AI Suggestions:
Can you specify for bombers to pursue capital ships and fighters to pursue other fighters?
Looking at the latest screenshot makes me wonder, is it possible to specificy for bombers to launch torpedoes like fighters can launch MIRVs?
Also, is it possible that you can Arrange for ships to stand at a certain point, and intercept any ships that pass within X amount of distance? That would be a really nice option for screening your carrier Force.
Even better would be if they could move while doing it, so they could screen a bomber strike moving against a capital ship.
It would be nice too if you could program in basic evasion techniques and make the fighters take into account how many ships they are facing... IE: If there is one friendly fighter against Six he turns tail and runs instead of engaging.
It would be nice also to put them in patrol mode, IE: The fly around and FIND the enemy ships, but don't destroy them, either they shadow them from a safe range, or simply return to the carrier. This would be more dependent on the implmentation of radar ranges and such, however.
Something else that would be nice to implment would be nav points, or call them waypoints, set a patrol path for the fighter to fly, or an area for him to patrol.
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To sum up, if it were me I would simply give the player a few differant hoices of what "mode" to put the fighters in:
1) Seek and Destroy - fly a pattern around the map and kill all the enemy fighters it finds.
2) Escort - Defend a capital ship, fighter, transport, or bomber from attack by attacking anything that comes near it...and if range gets to far from the escort target, break off and return to escort formation
3) Patrol - search for enemy fighters without engaging them
4) Interception - screen a force or stationary target from attack by fighters/bombers/torpedoes
5) Fighter Sweep - When you have located a large enemy force you can specifiy for all fighters in a wing or a group, or even just one, to speficially target the fighters for destruction
6) Capital Sweep - When you have located a large enemy force you can specifiy for all fighters/bombers in a wing or a group, or even just one to specifically target capital ships for destruction.
Notes: Obviously in 5-6 the fighters/bombers would ignore whatever was attacking them and simply concentrate on killing the target. Depending on game limits you may need a "Deploy Minefield" option and a "Clear Minefield" option as well, but I'm not sure if you're planning on having mines in this game at all.
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Questions:
1) How much control will be given over the Carrier itself?
2) Will the carrier sail around independently or fly with a Carrier Battle Group & Escorts?
3) How much control will be given over the escorting ships and/or their respective flight wings (In the case of an escorting cruiser, for example)?
4) Will Planets/Stations be included in the game?
5) Will the player have to manage the supplies of fuel and missiles on board the carrier?